


In From the Cold

by Brumeier



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Torchwood
Genre: Amputation, Community: hc_bingo, Crossover, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, First Kiss, First Meetings, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pre-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Rescue Missions, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-29
Updated: 2019-04-29
Packaged: 2020-02-09 20:50:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18645868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier
Summary: Steve is ready to sacrifice himself for the greater good when Captain Jack Harkness shows up with some devastatingly unexpected news and a plan to put things right for Steve and Bucky.





	In From the Cold

**Author's Note:**

> Written for H/C Bingo April Challenge: hostile climate, loss of limb, sacrifice, crossover 
> 
> Super-powered thanks to Taste_is_Sweet for the fast and amazing beta. You put a great shine on this fic and I appreciate you in every possible way!

The _Valkyrie_ was traveling too fast and was too damaged, and Steve was resigned to the inevitable: to save lives he’d have to sacrifice his own. Then again, was it really that much of a sacrifice? He had no family left. And there was a hollow space behind his breastbone that just kept growing and growing, until eventually there’d be nothing left but the shell of the man he’d been. The man who’d loved and lost his best friend.

Steve knew he was doing the right thing. The _only_ thing. He reached for the ship’s intercom to make his final report and say goodbye to Peggy; disappointing her was his only regret. 

“This is a sweet ride,” someone said.

Steve gave a start and whipped around in the pilot’s chair. There was a man standing behind him wearing an RAF uniform and Navy blue greatcoat, but his accent was American. Steve was certain he’d been the only one left on board.

“Where’d you come from?” He tensed, ready to fight to keep control of the _Valkyrie_ , but the man held up his hands. 

“Not where, when,” the man corrected. He grinned, giving Steve an obvious sweep with his eyes. “You know, you look even better in person. People don’t give enough credit to the old suit.”

Steve growled. “I don’t know who you are –”

“Oh. Right.” The man gave an apologetic tilt of his head. “Captain Jack Harkness, Royal Air Force. I’m an American volunteer.”

One of the good guys, then. That was unfortunate, and not just because Steve wouldn’t’ve minded an excuse to deck him. Steve turned back around. “You picked the wrong time to stow away. This thing is going down, hard and permanently.”

“I picked just the right time, actually.” Harkness came closer, peering over Steve’s shoulder. “Can this thing crash on its own? Or do you have to physically pilot it?” He winked when Steve gaped at him. “Asking for a friend.”

Something was definitely wrong here. Harkness was much too jovial, considering they were both about to die. Not to mention that most of what he’d said made no sense. And what the hell was he even doing there, anyway? Steve was certain there hadn’t been anyone other than him, Schmidt and his Hydra mooks on the ship, let alone a supposed American RAF pilot. Was this some kind of trick?

“I took it off autopilot and adjusted course,” Steve said. “It’s the only way to save lives.”

“Great! This’ll be much easier, then.” Harkness grabbed Steve’s arm. “No more deep freeze for you, handsome.”

“Hey!” Steve tried to yank his arm away, but before he could he felt a pulling sensation and then for a second he could’ve sworn he was floating. The next thing he knew, he was standing in a room that looked like it had come from one of the _Commander Sparks: Hero from the Future_ comics he and Bucky used to make up when they were kids. 

“Where am I?” he snarled. “What are you?”

“No need to be rude,” Harkness said. “Hang on, I’m not really great at this.”

He moved quickly around the large central console, shifting levers and pushing buttons and twisting dials. Steve didn’t like not knowing where he was or what was happening. Did Harkness have backup elsewhere in the building? And how the hell had Steve been removed from Schmidt’s plane?

“Long story short,” Harkness said as he made his way around the console, “I sort of borrowed this TARDIS so I could help right a wrong, which I know is something you’re all about, too.” He grinned again. “Also, I appreciate a man who isn’t afraid to wear spandex.”

“Answer me!”

“Time vortex,” Harkness said, as if that made any sense at all. “Which I’m technically not supposed to have either. It’s good for short jumps, but this far back? I needed a TARDIS. I just wish I was better at piloting it. Do you think you could give me a hand?”

Steve took a moment to consider his options. Harkness didn’t _seem_ dangerous, and he certainly wasn’t threatening. But he had technology that was beyond Steve’s understanding. And Steve still had no idea how he’d gotten there or even where he was. He needed more information.

Reluctantly, Steve moved to the nearest console.

“Great!” Harkness said happily. “Turn the wheel there seventy-five degrees, and then push that button.”

“You said piloting. Is this some kind of ship?” Steve asked, doing as he was told. It didn’t feel like they were moving, and there were no windows or portholes to look out of.

“It’s a time machine. That also travels through space.” Harkness disappeared around the other side of the console and Steve chased after him.

“Time machine?” It was like Commander Sparks come to life. Maybe Harkness had come from the future to take care of Hitler, just like he and Bucky had imagined.

“Look, I really can’t explain it. The Doctor could tell you all about the wobbly, bobbly time thing. What I _can_ tell you is that, if I do this right, we can go back and save your pal Bucky.”

Steve felt like he’d been punched in the gut. “Bucky?”

Harkness flipped a lever, and then moved further around the console to look intently at a screen mounted there. The display looked like nothing but gibberish to Steve.

“You and Bucky got a raw deal,” Harkness explained. “If we don’t save him now, he’ll become a brainwashed Hydra assassin. I think we can all agree that’s not a great option.”

“He’s dead,” Steve said, and that hollow spot behind his breastbone grew a little more. “I saw him fall. No-one could survive that.”

Harkness looked up at him, confusion and concern etched on his very expressive face. “Holy shit. You really didn’t know?” 

“Know what?” Steve demanded. He took a step closer, fists clenched. “What didn’t I know? Bucky’s dead!”

“That’s the thing,” Harkness said. “He’s _not_ dead. Before you liberated him from that base, Zola started him on the Super Soldier serum. He’s not dead. But he’s gonna be in a pretty bad way.”

Steve had to grab hold of the console to keep from falling down. Bucky was alive? And Hydra was going to get their hands on him? It made him sick to his stomach. Sicker still to realize he’d abandoned his best friend. How could he do that?

All Steve could see in his mind’s eye was the expression on Bucky’s face as he fell from the train. He’d been terrified.

Harkness was suddenly there, taking Steve by the arm and directing him to one of the two seats adjacent to the console.

“Nice and easy, Captain,” he said. “Sorry to just throw this all in your lap.”

Steve gripped Harkness’s arm. “Why is Bucky so important to you?”

“I lost my best guy,” was the solemn reply. “I don’t want to see you lose yours.”

*o*o*o*

Steve was pretty sure Captain Harkness had stolen the TARDIS, despite his assurances it had only been borrowed. It was enormous on the inside – there hadn’t been time for a tour, but Harkness had chatted happily about all the rooms – but on the outside it looked like a blue police box. What little Steve could see of it through the blowing snow.

Captain Harkness had provided him with cold-weather gear to put on over his suit, though the only concession he made to the brutal cold himself was a furry hat like what the Russians wore and some gloves.

“By my calculations,” Harkness shouted above the howling of the wind, “Bucky fell from the train about ten minutes ago. We should be in the general vicinity, if I did everything right.”

Steve looked up, but the trestle was shrouded by the blowing snow. It was such a long way down from there, and most of him couldn’t believe that Bucky had survived it, serum or no serum. That part was no match for the tiny ember of hope, the only thing keeping Steve from drowning in despair.

If Bucky was in that ravine, Steve would find him. And bring him home.

“Keep your eyes peeled,” Harkness said. He handed Steve a pair of goggles. “If you put those on, you’ll be able to see his heat signature. It’s the only way we’re going to find him in this.”

Steve slid the goggles on, and sure enough Harkness showed up like a big, red, human-shaped blob before Steve’s eyes, while everything else was blue.

To cover more ground, they went in opposite directions, armed with something like a walkie talkie, only it fit right inside the ear. Commander Sparks had only had a watch communicator, as Steve recalled.

The going was slow. The terrain was rocky, and the snow was deep, which meant Steve kept losing his footing. Every few feet he’d stop and do a scan with the goggles, looking for any kind of heat signature; Bucky’s would probably be weak just from the exposure. 

Harkness had said Hydra would find Bucky if they didn’t and turn him into a soulless weapon. Steve couldn’t think of a worse fate for his best friend. Bucky Barnes was a straight shooter, a good and honest man who’d gone to fight a war and ended up being sacrificed to an evil power that the Allies were only just beginning to comprehend.

“Bucky!” Steve shouted, and the name was immediately snatched away by the wind. “Bucky! If you can hear me, I’m coming!”

As if in response, the wind picked up even more, swirling around Steve like a tornado. The heavy wool coat he’d been given didn’t do much to combat that kind of cold. Bucky had even less to protect him from the harsh elements.

Steve yelled back at the wind and the elements and everything that was trying to keep him from finding Bucky. He wasn’t giving up this time, he didn’t care how long it took. If Hydra got to him first, Steve would go after them until he found where they’d taken Bucky. Nothing else mattered.

In his righteous fury, Steve almost overlooked the pale yellow heat signature, which was partially obscured by a snow-covered rocky outcropping.

“Bucky!” He ran, feet sliding, and there was Bucky, almost completely covered in snow. His skin was blue, the scratches and gashes on his face crusted with frozen blood. His breathing was so faint Steve thought for a minute he wasn’t breathing at all.

“I’m here, Buck! I’m here!”

Steve dropped to his knees and shrugged out of the coat, which he covered Bucky with. His friend was unresponsive, until Steve brushed the snow off and found his hand, meaning to hold it and transfer some warmth. Instead, Bucky convulsed weakly and made an awful mewling sound. Steve carefully brushed off more snow, looking for an injury.

Bucky’s left arm was completely mangled. Steve’s stomach heaved when he saw it.

“Captain Harkness! I found him!”

_Hang tight. I’ll be right there._

A second later, Harkness appeared on the other side of Bucky. The vortex thingie he wore strapped to his wrist was certainly handy. And hopefully it meant they wouldn’t have to carry Bucky all the way back to the TARDIS.

“Company’s coming,” Harkness said tersely. “Let’s get him out of here.”

Steve turned and could see a lot of heat signatures headed their way. Hydra. How had they found Bucky so quickly?

“Can that thing get all three of us out of here?”

Harkness grinned. “Hold on to him.”

Steve did, using both hands to tightly grip Bucky. Harkness peeled back the piece of leather covering his time jumping device and pressed something, then quickly grabbed hold of Steve.

When the Hydra agents reached the spot where Bucky had been, all they found was his blood frozen in the snow.

*o*o*o*

“Steve?”

“I’m right here, Bucky.” Steve squeezed his hand.

Bucky had been sedated for several days following his recovery from the ravine. It wasn’t the first time he’d come around, but he seemed more lucid this time.

He smiled weakly, eyes barely open. “You found me.”

“Till the end of the line, remember? We’re not there yet.”

Bucky shifted, like he might be trying to sit up, and then his face flooded with panic. The heart monitor started going crazy, bringing the nurse and a doctor running in.

“Calm down, Bucky,” Steve said. “It’s okay.”

“My arm,” Bucky gasped. He kept trying to move it. “My arm…”

The nurse readied a sedative, but Steve shook his head at her. He leaned over the bed and caught Bucky’s head between his hands; Bucky’s eyes were wide and wild, like a trapped animal’s.

“Bucky. Look at me. They tried, but they couldn’t save it. It was too badly damaged in the fall.”

He stared up at Steve, tears leaking from the corners of his eyes and chest heaving with labored breaths. “My arm.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Later, Steve would tell him that Howard Stark was already hard at work on a specialized prosthetic. No wood and leather contraption with a hook on the end for James Buchanan Barnes, Steve was seeing to that. He wanted Bucky to be able to do everything he used to, and there was no-one smarter than Stark to put to the task.

But that was for later. In the moment, Steve just gathered Bucky close and they both mourned the loss of his arm even while Steve was also celebrating the fact that his best friend was still alive.

*o*o*o*

“Must you leave?” Peggy asked Captain Harkness. “The SSR could use a man of your talents.”

Steve had asked the same question a day earlier, but Harkness wouldn’t be swayed despite all the fawning he’d done over Peggy since their introduction.

“I’m afraid so. Saving Sergeant Barnes has caused a lot of ripples in the timeline. There are some things that need tweaking.” Harkness took Peggy’s hand and then twirled her around before dipping her with a flourish. “But once that’s done, who knows? Good dance partners aren’t easily come by.”

Peggy laughed and pressed a kiss to Harkness’ cheek, leaving a bright red lip print behind. “Something to remember me by.”

“As if anyone could forget you, Peggy Carter.” Harkness lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles, making her blush.

Steve wasn’t at all sure if Harkness _would_ be able to come back, though. There was still the matter of the (most likely) stolen TARDIS to contend with, in addition to making some changes to the new timeline. The science of time travel was too twisty for Steve to follow logically, and he felt guilty that he and Bucky were the reason other people’s lives had been thrown into chaos. Bucky had been intrigued, though. Not a huge surprise from the guy who’d spent his last night before shipping out at the Modern Marvels of Tomorrow exhibition.

“Thanks,” Bucky said. “For saving this idiot from himself.”

He gave Steve a side-eye look. Bucky hadn’t been thrilled to hear about how Steve was prepared to sacrifice himself along with the _Valkyrie_.

“Bring it in, boys.” Harkness opened his arms wide and wrapped Steve and Bucky in a hug, and then murmured so only the two of them could hear. “This is your second chance. So bypass all the crap and get to the kissing. You’ll thank me later.”

Steve was flushing when Harkness stepped back, and so was Bucky, but they shared a look and Steve’s breath caught when he saw a considering look in Bucky’s eyes.

Bucky held out his hand. Howard had come through in spades, and the prosthetic was made of a lightweight, articulated metal that had the shape of an arm, fingers and all. He waited for Harkness to shake it. If Steve hadn’t been watching he’d have missed the exchange, which was very subtle. He wondered if Peggy had seen.

“Don’t do anything stupid,” Harkness said with a grin.

“How can we?” Bucky replied, stealthily pocketing the vortex manipulator Harkness had just handed him. “You’re taking all the stupid with you.”

Peggy smacked him on the shoulder. “James!”

Bucky grinned back at her, unrepentant.

Harkness laughed, then gave them all one last look before turning and walking into the TARDIS. They’d had to keep Howard in the dark about the time travel thing, or he’d have happily climbed aboard himself and vanished along with Harkness. The TARDIS made a grinding, wheezing sound and slowly disappeared.

Peggy sighed. “I need a drink. A round on me?”

“We’ll meet you there,” Steve said. “Five minutes.”

“Make it ten,” Bucky said with a gleam in his eyes.

The kiss was so amazing, it took them a good twenty minutes to meet Peggy at the club.

**Author's Note:**

>  **AN:** I didn’t think I was going to get around to writing something for this challenge. And then I had the idea of Steve saving Bucky right after he fell off the train. Genius! That would cover at least two of the four prompts I received. But when I took a closer look at this month’s challenge, I saw it was meant to also be a crossover. Who, I pondered, could I add to this story that would’ve been around during WWII? What if someone time traveled there? Originally I thought of the Doctor, but then…Captain Jack! Who actually canonically spent some time in the 40s! Who better to reunite two lovers than Jack? Thanks, muse!
> 
> Also, I took a lot of liberties. With a lot of things. So if something isn’t exactly how it happened in canon, I already know and did it on purpose. ::grins::


End file.
